John Gunderson vs. Yves Edwards official; UFC Fight Night 22 complete

The UFC’s return to the Lone Star State required a bit of creativity from the company’s matchmaking department, but all is now complete less than a week before the show.

A long-rumored matchup between Yves Edwards (38-16-1 MMA, 6-4 UFC) and John Gunderson (23-7 MMA, 1-1 UFC) is now official for the preliminary card of UFC Fight Night 22, and the event is now complete with 10 bouts.

The event airs on Spike TV and serves as the lead-in for the debut episode of “The Ultimate Fighter 12.”

Edwards returns to the octagon after a four-year absence in which he served stints with BodogFIGHT, EliteXC, Strikeforce and, most recently, Bellator Fighting Championships.

Edwards’ most recent win came in his promotional debut with the tournament-based Bellator promotion, where he bested Luis Palomino by decision at Bellator 24 in a one-off contest.

Gunderson, an IFL veteran, also reversed his fortune with a unanimous-decision over Mark Holst at The Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale. The former IFL regular fell short in his octagon debut with a decision loss to Rafaello Oliveira at UFC 108.

Gunderson was scheduled to take on Paul Taylor at UFC 112, but Taylor was removed from the Abu Dhabi card hours before it began due to a serious migraine headache. The two were rebooked to fight at The Ultimate Fighter 11 Finale, but Taylor was not medically cleared to fight, and the promotion subsequently slotted Holst in his spot.

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